A lot of poetry prompters like to inspire an ekphrastic poem – a poem inspired by or about a work of art. I tend to use my own photographs, since most artwork is copywritten.
High Waters
Mother Nature is a powerful forceas rivers flow down its speedy course
her fury manifests in blowing rain
melting snow that fails to drain
dread seeps into my weary soul
along the river we cannot stroll
cold, white, rushing water flows
as bitter wind on water blows
what did we do to deserve this weather
we shiver in fear and huddle together
roiling water boils and lathers
basements flood as water gathers
recover we must as water recedes
for flora and fauna my heart it bleeds
kindness of strangers in helping hands
as all begin to clear the lands
Flooding Mississippi River 2014 from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.
You can see it is lowering, also the high water mark as evidenced from the debris on the shore. The swallows are happily dancing on the fast, high water at the latter part of the video.
We took a drive into Carleton Place to pick up a water barrel, and passed through Mississippi Mills. I was driving, and veered off to look at Mississippi Lake. The horror of flooding and high water, and the dank smell of mould haunts me. Not only that, but the tragic ferry incident in South Korea just gives me the shivers.
It seems as if the media has abandoned those in southern Ontario affected by flooding. While the water has gone down, it's still pretty high for many families. Those who simply cottage there are far less affected than those who live there, for many cottages don't have basements.
